Big Beetle Books offers a unique, bilingual experience in children’s books. The stories this company makes are unique and charming, with a focus on supporting the development of linguistic skills and also developing cultural connections, as all books come in bilingual options. For toddlers, the company will offer memorable books with gorgeous illustrations.
Currently, readers can find three books available from the company: Mr. Peekaboo Rat, Ouchie Ouchie!, and Clippety-Clop’s Hop. These three stories are available in two languages, Hindi and English. This can help build a bridge between the two languages and offer children a connection with their cultural heritage and mother tongue. The publishing house is looking into offering editions in other Indian languages in addition to Hindi in the near future.
Each of the three stories is fun, vibrant, and full of exciting twists and turns that are sure to nurture a lifelong love of books through excellent storytelling. The stories are fun and educational, with a commitment to excellence that distinguishes the books from their collection. The stories are exciting and age-appropriate, exploring themes and topics that are relevant and interesting to the kids in this age group. The books also engage these young readers with interactive elements that spark curiosity and stimulate imagination.
Ouchie Ouchie is a charming book about the little explorer girl Laali, who is on an exciting adventure through her home. The picture book incorporates elements of Indian culture as the little explorer faces difficulties that teach her how to talk about pain and how to take care of little mishaps on the way to adventure.
Clippety-Clop is a little rocking horse who is bored of routine, so she decides to go on a trip around the world! She will meet all kinds of exciting characters and discover animals from all over in a charming picture book with memorable rhymes and illustrations.
Mr. Peekaboo Rat is a funny story about a rat appearing in Laali’s house! Laali is curious about the rat, while her mother is unhappy. As they chase the rat around, they have a wonderful little adventure.
Big Beetle Books is a carefully crafted work from Nandita, a mother and a storyteller. Her work speaks to bilingual families especially, with dramatic, exciting, and educational tales that are sure to resonate with families balancing the cultures of two different places. Each of the current picture books is charming in their own way and builds a connection through Indian cultural elements that are sure to make readers feel right at home. The stories are sure to interest and engage young readers easily, thanks to the fun tales they build and the gorgeous pictures. This is a perfect option for young kids.
You can find more and discover the entire catalog of books over at the website. You can get the books online and find versions in Hindi and English. All available books have beautiful illustrations and charming stories that can engage young readers and encourage a lifelong love of reading books through quality storytelling.
We had the pleasure of interviewing Nandita. Here are the excerpts from the interview.
Hi Nandita, It’s great to have you with us today! Please share with our readers about yourself.
Hi, I am a mother turned storyteller for Indian children being raised in bilingual families. By day, a diaper-changing ninja; by night, a story-spinning vagabond! I craft simple stories in English and Hindi that are high on drama and action and maintain a deep cultural connection with the daily lives of any Indian family.
I am also the creative mind behind Big Beetle Books. I created this boutique publishing company just to support my endeavor to create books for children. I wish to write and publish hundreds of books under Big Beetle Books.
What inspires your writing?
My aim is to write stories that are fresh, very entertaining, high on drama and action for children, and funny to read and read-aloud! I wish to bring out stories that are not just Indian but also very desi at heart. Stories that bring out the daily life and culture that we as kids had experienced and lived but now seem a distant past for our children. Even the characters, their names like Laali Laala, are quintessentially Indian generic words for little girl or little boy. Anyone can be Laali or Laala, so the stories are for everyone, and anyone can relate with them, be them. The attempt is to bring back that warmth of simple life experiences through these books, and a touch of nostalgia for parents that makes them share their own childhood memories with their kids or, at the very least, make the parents smile in their hearts.
In fact, most of the stories I have written may be fiction, but they are all inspired by real events, maybe even a rendition of actual events like Peekaboo Rat, Ouchie Ouchie, Buffalo Baby, Buxa, What’s for Lunch? They all have some element of truth and reality in them. These are the stories that I want to continue to write under big beetle books and share with kids and parents.
Please share with our readers about your books.
Mr. Peekaboo Rat is based on a fond memory of my childhood when my brother and I would help our mother find a mouse hiding in the kitchen, and then she would catch it in the gentlest manner and release it in the greens. The book is also about being kind to animals. It shows how the central character, Laali, is shown being sad and empathetic about the rat inside the cage.
Similarly, Ouchie Ouchie! has very common scenarios that every child experiences at home- crashing, banging their head, slipping, falling, etc. Every child can relate to it. Every mom can relate to the compulsiveness and lack of sense of consequence of the kids. She might even chuckle at the behavior so beautifully shown in words and pictures.
Clippety-Clop’s Hop may seem totally fictitious, but if you think a bit – it’s actually modeled on typical child behavior of getting bored quickly, trying new things, and in the process, learning something.
Please tell us about your journey.
It started with one idea for a story. I instantly wrote it and created some basic illustrations, and printed it. I read it to my daughter, and she showed interest. My husband suggested that I should try it with some other parents. It might just be a nice idea – writing children’s books. I tapped my mothers network to get feedback from as many mothers as I could. And the feedback was good. So, I wrote more and more and kept testing it with the audience. I also kept working on my craft. Gradually, I had about 5-6 stories that looked promising to publish. I reached out to a few editors online to provide feedback. And I started reaching out to the illustrators to get the books shaped up. It was quite hectic in between, and it took a lot of mental energy to figure out my way. But it got better as I kept moving forward. I was also expecting my second one at the time, so I had limited energy, and with a toddler kid in the house, I had fewer hours in the day to actively work on this. So, my daily schedule would be for a short but power-packed hyper-focused session. I have to say my phone was a blessing in all this. I transferred all my writings to the phone, and that enabled me to write anytime, anywhere, even while resting. Or waiting at the hospital. So that’s how I made most of my time. Gradually, it became smoother.
What are the strategies that helped you become successful in your journey?
I think I define my success as being able to publish so many stories that people have reviewed highly. I am happy about being able to publish a book and do it repeatedly afterwards. I am still in the process of distributing these books far and wide. That would bring a different kind of success. But I would say that when I received audio and video files from parents trying out my stories from a simple printout with no illustrations and giving such beautiful responses – being fully engaged with the stories – it was such a high. Kids are the toughest audience to write for. They are binary about their preferences- they either like or dislike. So, for them to like my stories in such a fond way was the best. So, the only strategy that works is to write good stories.
Any message for our readers?
As parents, you will find these books so easy on your senses. They are simple, quick to memorize, and offer many easy opportunities to parents to make them even more engaging. They will enjoy the stories dearly and have great conversations for bonding with their child.
That’s amazing! So tell us, how can people find out more about your book?
These books are available on Amazon and our website bigbeetlebooks.com.
Thank you so much, Nandita, for giving us your precious time! We wish you all the best for your journey ahead!
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